Sweet Potato-Cranberry Cake

Chocolate and sweet potato batters are swirled together to make this moist, tender spice cake from Patricia Polley of Columbus, Ohio. Wrap and store the cooled cake overnight for easier slicing. (It's a great alternative to coffee cake for brunches.)

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 1/2teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon salt

1/2teaspoon ground cloves

1/2teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 cups cooked, mashed plain sweet potatoes*

1 1/2cups vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 1/2teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2cups granulated sugar

1 cup chopped walnuts and/or pecans, toasted

3/4cup chopped fresh cranberries

4 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly

Powdered sugar (optional)

Directions

In a very large mixing bowl, beat sweet potatoes and oil with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined. Beat in sugar. Add flour mixture, beating until combined. Fold in walnuts and cranberries.

Transfer one-third (about 2-1/2 cups) of the batter to a large bowl; stir in melted chocolate. Spoon half of the remaining plain batter into the prepared tube pan. Spoon chocolate batter over batter in pan. Spoon remaining plain batter over chocolate batter. Gently draw a table knife or thin metal spatula through the batters to marble them slightly.

Bake in a 350 degrees oven for 55 to 65 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes; invert cake onto a wire rack. Cool completely.

If you like, sift powdered sugar over cake just before serving.

Note

* For 2 cups mashed, plain sweet potatoes, peel 1 pound sweet potatoes. Cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces. Cook potato pieces, covered, in enough boiling water to cover for 20 to 25 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain well. Mash with a potato masher or beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

Comments (1)

This is delicious! The texture is perfect, and it stays so moist! Even in a basic tube pan, it is gorgeous.
I added a few extra cranberries, and replaced 1/2c of oil with yogurt, and still, spectacular. A definite hit.